Sensex, Nifty likely to open lower; Bank of Baroda, Wipro, HDFC Bank in focus

Indian benchmark indices BSE Sensex and NSE's Nifty 50 are likely to open lower on Thursday as investors will remain cautious ahead of the final results of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Counting of votes will begin at 8 AM today and final results are likely to be declared late in the evening. Exit polls of the general elections predicted a comfortable win for the Narendra Modi government.

In global markets, Asian shares traded in red amid fears of escalating US-China trade tensions. Meanwhile, minutes of the US Federal Reserve's last meeting underlined its readiness to be patient on policy "for some time" given the uncertain global outlook. The chance of a rate cut seemed to diminish.

Indian shares ended marginally higher in the previous session. The Sensex settled 140 points higher at 39,110, while the Nifty50 added 29 points to end at 11,738. 

At 07.05 AM, the SGX Nifty, an early indicator of the Nifty 50's trend in India, was down 28 points, or 0.24 percent, at 11,752.00, indicating a weak start for the Sensex and Nifty.

Stocks to watch: Bank of Baroda, Wipro, HDFC Bank in focus.